***Kogi Ranked Dirtiest
Akwa Ibom State has once again emerged as Nigeria’s cleanest state, maintaining the top position for the sixth consecutive year with a cumulative score of 78.2%, according to the National Technical Study Group (NTSG).
Kogi State ranked last with a score of 11%, the group announced during the unveiling of the STONE Pro-Max 2023 review in Uyo.
The National Coordinator and Secretary of NTSG, Prince Ene Baba Owoh, said the results reflect a five-year performance assessment aimed at promoting sanitation and environmental hygiene across Nigeria. Ebonyi and the FCT placed second and third with scores of 50% and 47%, respectively.
Owoh noted that Akwa Ibom has sustained its leadership status since the project began in 2018. He urged state governments to embrace a peer-review mechanism by learning from both top-performing and low-ranking states.
He also expressed concern over Nigeria’s sanitation challenges, revealing that the World Health Organisation (WHO) rates the country as having the highest incidence of open defecation globally. He warned that poor hygiene habits continue to affect national wellbeing, noting that Nigeria’s life expectancy has dropped from 44 years in 2018 to 40 years in 2023.
Owoh called on governments at all levels to intensify efforts toward meeting WHO’s target of ending open defecation by 2025, particularly by increasing access to public toilets. He also advocated the return of monthly sanitation exercises and strict enforcement of drainage clean-up, stressing that 87% of Nigerians have abandoned basic sanitation responsibilities.
For its sustained excellence, Akwa Ibom will receive the STONE 2023 Pro-Max Cleanest State in Nigeria Green Crystal Award.
Delivering a goodwill message, the Akwa Ibom Commissioner for Environment, Uno Etim Uno, commended the Clean Up Nigeria Initiative for the recognition and reaffirmed the state’s commitment to proper waste management, ending gas flaring, and improving environmental safety.
Chairman of the Akwa Ibom Environmental Protection and Waste Management Agency (AKSEPWMA), Prince Akpan Ikim, praised past and present governors for laying the foundation of environmental cleanliness. He added that the agency is collaborating with the State House of Assembly to design new environmental laws aligned with international best practices to attract investors.
